5 things to know about the 2014-15 NBA season

After a whirlwind offseason full of blockbuster transactions, unfortunate injuries, ownership changes, and an unfathomably lucrative new TV deal (which won’t kick in for a couple of years), the 2014-15 season is easily the most highly anticipated campaign in years.

And it’s only a day away.

Here are five things that will define the year in basketball.

Return of the King

LeBron James’ return to Cleveland is the biggest NBA storyline since LeBron James left Cleveland four years ago. Only this time, instead of hate, nasty letters, and ridiculous talk of betrayal, the story is about excitement, a heartfelt letter, and redemption.

There will be plenty of intriguing talking points over the next nine months, both on the court and off, but none will compare to James’ return and his quest to deliver Cleveland its first major sports championship in over 50 years.

With Kevin Love and Kyrie Irving joining James on that quest, the high-powered Cavaliers are going to be ridiculously good, and their offense should be an absolute treat to watch. They’ll need to find some rim protection, but in previewing the upcoming season, there’s no better place to start.

The Durant-less, Westbrook-led Thunder

Since landing the Thunder in 2008, Kevin Durant is all Oklahoma City has known. He's been on the floor for 535 of the Thunder’s 549 games, including the postseason, and has missed only 16 games over his first seven years in the NBA.

That all changes this week, when the Russell Westbrook-led Thunder begin the regular season without Durant, and KD begins an absence that will likely see him miss more than 16 games over a couple of months alone.

The Thunder should be fine in the long run, though, as long as Durant’s foot fracture doesn't linger. Westbrook, Serge Ibaka, Reggie Jackson, and co. should be able to hold the fort down through an opening quarter-season that sees OKC play only eight of 20 games against 2014 playoff teams.

But in the unforgiving West, even dropping a game or two during that stretch, that they'd normally win with Durant in the lineup, could be the difference between a No. 1, 2, or 3 seed, which in turn could be the difference between home-court advantage in the second and third rounds against the San Antonio Spurs or Los Angeles Clippers.

And that could change everything for a team whose window may already be closing (Durant's a free agent in two years).

On the flip side, Westbrook himself will be a fascinating story.

For all of the criticism he gets for not deferring to Durant enough, and for his sometimes questionable shot selection, Westbrook is undoubtedly one of the five-to-10 best players in the game. Watching him try to put a team on his back should be fun.

Rose and Bryant each returning from injury ... again

Like last year, the returns of Derrick Rose and Kobe Bryant are two of the more intriguing storylines of the upcoming season. Rose’s return last November lasted only 10 games before he suffered another knee injury. Kobe’s return in December from a torn Achilles lasted six games before a knee fracture sidelined him again.

The expectations surrounding their returns could not be more different, though.

Rose’s return to health and to the MVP-level of play he enjoyed three years ago would transform the Chicago Bulls, one of the biggest winners of the offseason, into legitimate championship contenders again. The Bulls would likely give James’ Cavaliers their only true challenge in the Eastern Conference.

Bryant’s return to full health would be exciting, dramatic, and inspiring in itself, but at 36, no one is expecting the world from The Mamba.

The Lakers are going to stink. If Kobe can merely stay healthy, average 15-20 points per game, turn in a few vintage Mamba performances from time to time, and continue to climb up the all-time scoring ladder (he begins the season 595 points behind Michael Jordan), his season will be a success.

A new Clippers era

The Clippers became a relevant team the day they acquired Chris Paul in December 2011, and their 153-77 record over the last three seasons proves that. When they landed Doc Rivers to coach and run the team’s basketball operations in 2013, their respect and legitimacy among the NBA’s crop of contenders multiplied.

Still, an evil presence lurked over the long-maligned franchise.

With Steve Ballmer now in and Donald Sterling finally out, the franchise finally has an owner Clippers fans and the NBA as a whole can be proud of, a man whose boisterous enthusiasm personifies the excitement of Lob City.

The Clippers enter the season with as good a shot of winning the championship as any team outside of Cleveland, with two legitimate MVP candidates in Paul and Blake Griffin, with one of the game’s best minds in Doc Rivers leading the way, and, finally, without a racist owner with a checkered past who makes you feel slimy for even cheering for the team.

Collective Bantering Bargaining

The mutual opt-out clause in the current Collective Bargaining Agreement is still more than two-and-half years away (2017), but the unprecedented $24-billion media rights deal the league recently secured has already led to plenty of CBA banter among fans and pundits alike.

There might not be any CBA urgency this season, but expect talk of the rising salary cap, strategic free agency timing, what to do with max contracts and the like to dominate a fair share of headlines throughout the season.

© 2014 Disney